1. Technical Field
The present invention relates generally to collision evaluation systems, and more particularly to a method and apparatus for real time stamping synchronization of automotive vehicle-related systems.
2. Background of the Invention
Currently, post collision evaluation is performed to reconstruct a collision event and provide a better understanding of actual occurrences during the collision event. Reconstruction of collision events requires an abundance of data corresponding to both on-vehicle systems and off-vehicle systems. The data may include vehicle velocities, vehicle direction of travel, vehicle component statuses and faults, restraint information, approximate weather conditions, and various other related information.
The data collected may be stored on the vehicle during the collision event or information such as weather or traffic signal information may be collected off the vehicle via information centers. On-vehicle systems such as a restraints control module store collision related information relative to other collision related information. For example, a computer generated clock time is recorded when an accelerometer senses a potentially collidable object and a time of deployment is recorded relative to the generated clock time as to when a restraint was activated relative to the detection of the object. None of these events, however, are recorded relative to the actual time of day.
Synchronization of fault times for various on vehicle system components provides information that can be used to determine which failures on the vehicle occurred first. Determining which failures occurred first, aids in determining what faults may have caused other faults. Also, by understanding what faults occurred first, degradation of vehicle systems functionality at relative times during the collision may be evaluated.
Since, element times corresponding to various occurrences during a collision event are stored relative to each other it is difficult to determine and correlate what actual weather conditions existed, what actual traffic signals existed, and what other related conditions or signals existed at a particular time during a collision event. It is also difficult to correlate stored times on a first vehicle with stored times on a second vehicle. Another difficulty is in being able to ascertain whether an electronic device such as a pager, cell phone, computer, personal digital assistant, or other electronic device is operative during a collision event.
An ongoing concern for safety engineers is to provide a safer automotive vehicle with increased collision avoidance and injury prevention capability. Improved vehicle safety designs can be realized if additional and better collision information could be retrieved from a vehicle relating to reconstruction of elements of a collision.
Therefore, it would be desirable to provide an improved collision evaluation system for an automotive vehicle that provides for greater ease in correlation of element times for both on-vehicle and off-vehicle systems. In so doing, a reduction in the frequency of collisions and the severity of collisions maybe realized.